The 2008 Presidential Primary season was a short one, lots of events packed in a few days. I was interviewed four times, once making it onto NPR. I didn't see all the candidates due to the compact schedule, but it was still fun. All of these events were within a few miles of where I live. |
| 1. John McCain at the pharmacy in Hollis. His events were the only ones that seemed to start on time. I managed to score my first interview with a very attractive reporter from the Washington Post (or maybe the Wall Street Journal, I forget); mostly because we were too far away from McCain to hear what he was saying very well. *I* was just trying to be friendly and flirt. Clever me soon figured out she was a reporter (not sure if it was the business card or notepad where she jotted down our conversation that clued me in.) (IMGP3877.jpg) |
| 2. This is typical, so many reporters a regular person can't get close. (IMGP3878.jpg) |
| 3. The line for Obama's rally at Nashua North High School. I had to park way down the road at an elementary school. (IMGP3882.jpg) |
| 4. This was the overflow gym, it was a huge crowd and they piped the sound in. (IMGP3900.jpg) |
| 5. He came in here afterwards (surrounded by Secret Service). This is the only time I've ever seen a Secret Service Agent crack a smile. (IMGP3893.jpg) |
| 6. Typical broadcast truck (this one is NBC). (IMGP3904.jpg) |
| 7. Someone at NBC has a sense of humor with the ice cream selections above the patch panel. (IMGP3904c.jpg) |
| 8. Inside the truck (well... I'm a techie...) (IMGP3906.jpg) |
| 9. The line for Hillary's rally the next day (in the same school). (IMGP3910.jpg) |
| 10. This one stretched waaaay down the street. Crowd estimated at 3500, huge by NH Primary standards. (IMGP3909.jpg) |
| 11. A guess a picture of a voter taking pictures is newsworthy. (IMGP3911.jpg) |
| 12. The press had a nice area to file their stories. (IMGP3915.jpg) |
| 13. The view from the press platform (just before I was kicked off). (IMGP3912.jpg) |
| 14. Hillary giving a speech to a cheering crowd. (IMGP3922.jpg) |
| 15. She took questions for over an hour afterwards. A real trooper, staying on to make everyone happy. This shot taken with a normal lens so you can see how close I was. (IMGP3935.jpg) |
| 16. This reporter may be wearing a suit, but on his feet he was wearing sensible snow boots. (IMGP3954.jpg) |
| 17. Hillary worked the crowd and signed autographs for quite a while. This was unusual, most candidates don't hang around long. (IMGP3962.jpg) |
| 18. That's an impressive Secret Service Detail. (IMGP3968.jpg) |
| 19. Chelsea Clinton also signed autographs. (IMGP3975.jpg) |
| 20. But getting her to pose with you for a photo is much more fun. I almost didn't have to ask, just handed my camera to one of her escorts. (IMGP3976.jpg) |
| 21. Meanwhile, the kids outside were ignoring it all... (IMGP3979.jpg) |
| 22. At the John Edwards Town Meeting two volunteers entertained the crowd at Martha's Exchange in Downtown Nashua. This is a more typical New Hampshire event; small and intimate. (IMGP3984.jpg) |
| 23. He talked for a while and then took a couple questions. The room was packed and it got real hot. One young woman fainted from standing too long in the heat. (IMGP4001.jpg) |
| 24. He shook hands on the way in and out. (Sorry about the color balance, I forgot to change it after turning on the flash.) (IMGP4016.jpg) |
| 25. Travelin' in style (36 hours straight). I *used* to to stay awake that long back when I didn't know better. We later (much later) found out that John Edwards has about the same amount of common sense as I did back then. (IMGP4019.jpg) |
| 26. John McCain arriving at an early morning rally at Nashua City Hall Plaza. (IMGP4020.jpg) |
| 27. It was short and to the point. BTW: That's Hiz'oner [our Mayor] Bernie Streeter [a Democrat] standing next to John McCain [Republican]. Does this count an an endorsement? Of course, it was like 7AM; maybe he wasn't awake yet... (IMGP4028.jpg) |
| 28. His wife and daughters were along to help. After they left I was interviewed for NPR by someone from WBUR. He wanted to know who I was voting for; I responded I hadn't completely made up my mind yet but was probably going to vote for Ron Paul on the Republican side. (Hillary was my choice on the Democratic side, however we only get to pick one.) I didn't hear the segment but several of my friends did. I heard about it when they called and emailed to yank my chain about my choice. (IMGP4029.jpg) |
| 29. Leading up to election day there were volunteers on every corner in Downtown Nashua. (IMGP4036.jpg) |
| 30. Decision day; the line at the polls wasn't too long. |
Election Night Bash—Election night there were two candidate bashes in Nashua: McCain's at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, and Obama's at Nashua North High School. I picked McCain's to attend as: a) It was across the street from where I live, b) Obama's at the high school would require parking with a long walk to the gym, c) The food in the hotel was guaranteed to be better, d) I guessed [correctly] that the Senator would win and Obama would lose (meaning a happier crowd at the hotel), and e) I liked McCain (and Ron Paul) on the Republican side; on the Democratic side I preferred Hillary, but her bash was 20 miles north in Manchester. |
| 31. The main ballroom at the Crowne Plaza was packed. The Fire Marshall eventually closed it to any additional people. All sorts of people were attending, volunteers, officials, general supporters, and tons of press. The women were for the most part, all "dressed to the nines". I was interviewed by a reporter from Japan who barely spoke english, I have no idea what he thought I said. (IMGP4039.jpg) |
| 32. The tech setup was impressive. The audio engineer had a difficult job keeping the sound level high enough to hear, but low enough to allow all the electronic media outlets to do live broadcasts. (IMGP4040.jpg) |
| 33. The TV stations were lined up in an "L" shape on raised platforms along two sides of the room, facing both the podium and big screen TV; all lit with the best in theatre lights. The production company was MassAV from Manchester. It was interesting recognizing television news personalities in person I'd only seen on TV before. (IMGP4046.jpg) |
| 34. Senator McCain came out and gave the traditional victory speech. (IMGP4070.jpg) |
| 35. On cue, the room was filled with confetti... tons of it!!! (IMGP4080.jpg) |
| 36. After the Senator left, the party started winding down. This is also when all the crazies started coming out (fueled by plenty of liquid). This one was dubbed "The Guy With The Boot" by the crowd. (IMGP4091.jpg) |
| 37. I had nothing to do with this! I was minding my own business trying to get a good shot of the ice sculpture when these clowns showed up; one flashing her bumper stickers for friends with cameras. The bumper stickers, incidently, were the ones being handed out by The Guy With The Boot (I had no idea what they were for). (IMGP4100.jpg) |
| 38. Back inside, even with the ballroom being emptying out and being torn down, the TV stations continued live broadcasts. (IMGP4047.jpg) |
| 39. The print media filed their stories from a separate room. (IMGP4099.jpg) |
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40. One of the Senator's young supporters proudly displays an autograph. (IMGP4095.jpg)
Postscript: The winners were John McCain and Hillary Clinton which made me very happy since they were my favorites among all the viable candidates. Of course I also like Bill Richardson and Ron Paul, but neither had a chance. I didn't get a change to see Rudi (he spoke at the PC Connection plant down the road. It was advertised on his schedule but when I got there found it was closed to the public.) Rudi's unwillingness to engage in typical NH-style retail politics I believe contributed to his loss. It's too bad, I would have liked to have seen him. Also didn't see Ron Paul (his apperance in Nashua conflicted with one of the big ones in the High School.) Richardson was in the local bowling alley later in the evening and I skipped his since I was dead tired. And Romney, Huckabee, and the others spent most of their time in the more conservative parts of the state. (ie, Nashua and Manchester are the more liberal parts being the biggest cities.) PPS: Sorry, no page for the 2012 NH Primary. It was kinda boring compared to 2008. Obama was the only candidate on the Democratic side; Mitt Romney and Ron Paul the only real candidates on the Republican side. Ron Paul was the only one I was really interested in seeing, and I couldn't make it to the sole event he had in the Nashua area. However, 2016 will be much more interesting with no incumbent or heir-apparent. |